Robert E. Irion, Sandy, Utah: an interview by Benjamin Bahlmann, September 20, 2002: Saving the legacy tape no. 537, 538, and 539

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Robert E. Irion eptember 20th, 2002 And gliders are going in and crashing into trees - you could see crashes here and there and every place. And the paratroops, you could see ' chutes all over the place, you know. But you couldn't really make out what's going on. And of course we've got to keep our eyes peeled for any German fighters. We didn't see any German fighters at all that day- there was no opposition in our area. But it was a very confusing scene that day as to what was happening on the ground. From somebody brand new at this anyhow, you couldn't really make out what all is going on except a hell of a lot of gliders crashing into fences and trees and stuff and thinking, "Wow! I wonder how they came out of that." And you're hoping those paratroopers are all in one piece, too, when they landed. That was the first mission. BEN: So did you fire your weapons ever? ROB: Not at that time. No. BEN: So your first introduction was just flying cover? ROB: Yeah. BEN: But then kind of a confusing scene. ROB: But most of your missions were pretty boring. You're flying and you're looking for something but if it isn't there, you know, there's nothing going on. You're just out there tooling around at the wrong time. That gets me back to the second half of the story about the guy that didn't want to be an instructor, Ed Hesse(?). Ed Hesse, on his second mission, it was October the 6th, and his second mission they were flying to Berlin - and Brandenburg, which is about thirty-five miles west of Berlin- his plane got hit right between the co-pilot's seat and the number three engine. 66